Islamabad, November 2, 2026: Chairman Senate Syed Yousaf Raza Gilani has said that no party can unilaterally alter, suspend or revoke the Indus Waters Treaty, warning that any move to block, suspend or divert Pakistan\u2019s legitimate share of water would be treated as an act of war and would invite a direct response.<\/p>\n
Speaking as chief guest at the Sixth Pakistan Water Week 2026, Gilani said Pakistan would never allow water to be weaponised or used as an instrument of geopolitical pressure. He maintained that the country\u2019s water security, sovereignty and national interests were non-negotiable.<\/p>\n
The Chairman Senate said the Indus Waters Treaty remained a binding international agreement and Pakistan\u2019s position on it was firm and principled. Any attempt to undermine Pakistan\u2019s rights under the treaty, he added, would have serious consequences.<\/p>\n
Highlighting the challenges facing the water sector, Gilani said Pakistan was dealing with the twin pressures of catastrophic floods, which displace millions, and prolonged droughts, which weaken soil resources and threaten agricultural productivity. He noted that declining per capita water availability had brought the country to a critical point, making water security an urgent national priority.<\/p>\n
He congratulated the International Water Management Institute, the Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research, the Ministry of Water Resources, the Pakistan Council of Research in Water Resources and other development partners for continuing Pakistan Water Week as a platform for scientific dialogue, policy development and collaborative solutions.<\/p>\n
Recalling his tenure as prime minister during the 2010 floods, which affected approximately 20 million people, Gilani said he had witnessed the enormous human cost of natural disasters. Referring to his interaction with flood-affected communities during recent floods, he said he had seen their suffering, listened to their accounts and mobilised efforts for relief and rehabilitation.<\/p>\n
\u201cEvery disaster is a warning we ignored. Disaster response is not resilience, and no single institution can address these challenges in isolation,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Gilani stressed that Pakistan must move beyond a reactive approach to disaster management and adopt a comprehensive framework based on prevention, preparedness, climate adaptation and long-term resilience. He called for stronger institutional coordination, enforceable legislation, effective planning and adequate financial allocations for preventive measures.<\/p>\n
He assured that the Senate would play its constitutional and institutional role in this transition through legislation on river basins, parliamentary oversight to ensure that water policies benefit farmers and communities, and advocacy for dedicated budgetary allocations for disaster prevention and water conservation.<\/p>\n
The Chairman Senate said water was a unifying factor for the federation and that equitable distribution and effective coordination between the federation and the provinces were essential for national cohesion. He referred to the 1991 Water Accord and the National Water Policy 2018 as key milestones reflecting the country\u2019s collective commitment to managing water resources.<\/p>\n
He said the real challenge was the effective implementation of these national frameworks. As the House of the Federation, he added, the Senate offered an important constitutional forum for strengthening federal-provincial cooperation, building consensus and addressing issues of national significance.<\/p>\n
Gilani said Pakistan\u2019s water security was directly linked with its agricultural economy, food security, environmental sustainability and overall economic development. He called for greater investment in water conservation, efficient irrigation systems, modern water management technologies, research and climate-resilient agricultural practices.<\/p>\n
He said scientific research, innovation and knowledge-sharing must remain central to policymaking, while partnerships among government institutions, research organisations, academia and international development partners should be strengthened to develop practical and sustainable solutions.<\/p>\n
Setting out a national vision, Gilani said Pakistan must become a water-secure and flood-resilient nation by 2047, when the country would mark 100 years of independence.<\/p>\n
He expressed confidence that sustained institutional partnerships, scientific expertise and collective national commitment would help Pakistan achieve this vision. He also acknowledged the role of IWMI and its development partners in supporting Pakistan\u2019s efforts to address complex water-related challenges.<\/p>\n
Concluding his address, the Chairman Senate hoped that the Sixth Pakistan Water Week would produce actionable recommendations, innovative solutions and a clear roadmap for strengthening Pakistan\u2019s water security.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Chairman Senate Syed Yousaf Raza Gilani says the Indus Waters Treaty cannot be changed unilaterally and warns against any move to block Pakistan\u2019s water share.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":21887,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[94],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-21888","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-pakistan"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.peakpoint.pk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/21888","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.peakpoint.pk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.peakpoint.pk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.peakpoint.pk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/7"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.peakpoint.pk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=21888"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.peakpoint.pk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/21888\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.peakpoint.pk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/21887"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.peakpoint.pk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=21888"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.peakpoint.pk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=21888"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.peakpoint.pk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=21888"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}